Davis said Thursday the increase should be the response to a recent Kansas Supreme Court ruling that past reductions in such aid created unconstitutional gaps in funding between poor districts and wealthier ones.

Key Republican legislators said they’re working to comply with the court’s order to fix the problems by July 1 without busting the state budget.

But Davis said lawmakers should simply add the money to the budget, rather than shifting funds from some other place. He said it’s time for lawmakers to set things right.

Davis is a Lawrence Democrat who’s also hoping to unseat Brownback in this year’s governor’s race.